Baroness Thatcher, Britain’s greatest post-war prime minister, died at the age of 87 after suffering a stroke (a disease related to blood vessels in the brain), her family announced on 8 April 2013. Her son, Sir Mark, and daughter Carol confirmed her death that morning.
Margaret Thatcher, daughter of a businessman and mayor of Grantham, was educated at the local grammar school, and at Oxford, where she got a degree in chemistry, and upon graduation she worked for four years as a research chemist. She then qualified as a lawyer in 1954.
As Miss Margaret Roberts, she stood twice in parliamentary (国会的) elections for the Conservative Party (保守党), before being elected (after her marriage) to the House of Commons in 1959.
When the Conservatives returned to office in June 1970, she was appointed secretary of state for education and science. After the Conservatives lost power in 1974, she was appointed to the Shadow Cabinet (内阁), and was elected leader of the Conservative Party in 1975.
Baroness Thatcher became prime minister on 4 May 1979 and went on to earn the nickname “the Iron Lady”, becoming known for her strong responses to the political and economic crisis, which Thatcher’s supporters think are good for Britain, while her opposers argue that her policies destroyed British manufacturing.
Lady Thatcher governed Britain from 1979 to 1990. She will go down in history not only as Britain’s first female prime minister, but as the woman who changed Britain’s economy in addition to being an awesome rival on the international stage.
Lady Thatcher was the only British prime minister to leave behind a set of ideas about the role of the state which other leaders and nations try to copy and apply.How old was Lady Thatcher when she became prime minister?
| A．64 | B．53 | C．87 | D．45 |
Why did Lady Thatcher get the nickname “the Iron Lady”?
| A．Because she was the first female prime minister in Britain. |
| B．Because she took strong measures to deal with the crisis. |
| C．Because she was strong enough to live a long life. |
| D．Because her supporters credited (归功于) her with developing the British economy. |
Which of the following statements is NOT true about Lady Thatcher?
| A．She died of a heart attack on 8 April 2013. |
| B．She left behind many ideas about the role of the state. |
| C．Not all the people are in favor of her policies. |
| D．She governed Britain for 11 years. |
Which is the correct order of what happened in Thatcher’s life?
a. She became prime minister.
b. She was appointed secretary of state for education and science.
c. She was educated at a local grammar school.
d. She was elected leader of the Conservative Party.
e. She qualified as a lawyer.
| A．e-c-b-d-a | B．c-e-d-b-a |
| C．b-c-e-d-a | D．c-e-b-d-a |
Health experts have long worried about the increasing rate of obesity in kids. It’s an important concern: Being very overweight or obese during childhood can lead to serious problems normally seen in adults, such as diabetes and high blood pressure. Poor diets and a lack of exercise are usually the causes. But would you ever have imagined there might be a connection between the bacteria that lived in your guts （内脏）when you were a baby and the chance that you would become overweight?
Scientists in Finland recently found just such a link. In a recent study, they showed that overweight kids had different species of bacteria living in their guts.
You probably think of bacteria only as germs that can make you sick. While it’s true that some bacteria can make people ill, your body actually depends on some types of bacteria to help you digest food and extract nutrients from it. These “good” bacteria live in your guts, where they process the food you eat.
Human babies get these bacterial helpers from their moms. When a baby is born, some of the bacteria in the mother move into the baby’s body. Growing babies get additional “good” bacteria from the milk their mothers produce. And it turns out the bacteria might play an important role in regulating weight just six years later.
So how could these bacteria affect weight? The researchers still haven’t tested that question, but future tests might lead to an answer.The “link” in Paragraph 2 refers to the relationship between _______.
| A．bacteria and the chance of being overweight | B．obesity and diabetes |
| C．diets and the chance of being overweight | D．bacteria and exercise |
Which of the following is NOT the function of “good” bacteria?
| A．Helping to digest food. | B．Helping to take nutrients from food. |
| C．Helping to regulate weight. | D．Making a person ill. |
The purpose of writing this passage is to _______.
| A．introduce the role of bacteria in children’s weight |
| B．analyze the influence of obesity on kids |
| C．give advice on how to lose weight quickly |
| D．explain the function of bacteria in foods |
Ask someone what they have done to help the environment recently and they will almost certainly mention recycling. Recycling in the home is very important of course. However, being forced to recycle often means we already have more material than we need. We are dealing with the results of that over-consumption in the greenest way possible, but it would be far better if we did not need to bring so much material home in the first place.
The total amount of packaging increased by 12% between 1999 and 2005. It now makes up a third of a typical household’s waste in the UK. In many supermarkets nowadays food items are packaged twice with plastic and cardboard.
Too much packaging is doing serious damage to the environment. The UK, for example, is running out of areas for burying this unnecessary waste. If such packaging is burnt, it gives off greenhouse gases which go on to cause the greenhouse effect. Recycling helps, but the process itself uses energy. The solution is not to produce such items in the first place. Food waste is a serious problem, too. Too many supermarkets encourage customers to buy more than they need. However, a few of them are coming round to the idea that this cannot continue, encouraging customers to reuse their plastic bags, for example.
But this is not just about supermarkets. It is about all of us. We have learned to associate packaging with quality. We have learned to think that something unpackaged is of poor quality. This is especially true of food. But is also applies to a wide range of consumer products, which often have far more packaging than necessary.
There are signs of hope. As more of us recycle, we are beginning to realise just how much unnecessary material are collecting. We need to face the wastefulness of our consumer culture, but we have a mountain to climb.What does the underlined phrase “over-consumption” refer to?
| A．Using too much packaging. |
| B．Recycling too many wastes. |
| C．Making more products than necessary. |
| D．Having more material than is needed. |
The author uses figures in Paragraph 2 to show _______.
| A．the tendency of cutting household waste |
| B．the increase of packaging recycling |
| C．the rapid growth of super markets |
| D．the fact of packaging overuse |
What can be inferred from Paragraph 4?
| A．Unpackaged products are of bad quality. |
| B．Supermarkets care more about packaging. |
| C．It is improper to judge quality by packaging. |
| D．Other products are better packaged than food. |
What can we learn from the last paragraph?
| A．Fighting wastefulness is difficult. |
| B．Needless material is mostly recycled. |
| C．People like collecting recyclable waste. |
| D．The author is proud of their consumer culture. |
There are over one million superstitions(迷信), and most people believe at least one or two of them.
Many people are superstitious about numbers. They think that there are lucky numbers and unlucky numbers.
The number 13 is often considered unlucky. In some parts of the world, buildings have no 13th floor and streets have no houses with the number 13. In Japan, "4" is considered unlucky because in Japanese the word "four" is pronounced the same as the word "death" .
Japanese never give gifts of four knives, four napkins, or four of anything.
What are the lucky numbers? Seven is a lucky number in many places, and "8" is considered a lucky number in Japan and China. In China, businesses often open on August 8, and many couples register to get married at eight past eight on August 8.
Superstitions about numbers are so widespread that some people--called numerologist--make a living by giving advice about numbers.
In 1937, when the Toyoda family of Japan wanted to form a car company, they asked a numerologist if "Toyoda" would be a good name for the company. The numerologist said it would not be. He explained that "Toyota" would be a better name for the company. The family took his advice. As a result, millions of people drive "Toyota" and not "Toyoda" .
There are many other kinds of superstitions. There are superstitions about eating, sleeping, sneezing and itching(抓痒). There are superstitions about animals and holidays and horseshoes.
There are even superstitions about superstitions. Those superstitions will tell people how to reverse bad luck.
When the Japanese bump heads, they immediately bump heads again. According to a Japanese superstition, the first-bump means their parents will die, but the second bump "erases" the first bump
To reverse bad luck in general, people turn around three times, turn their pockets inside out, or put their hats on backwards.
In the United States, baseball players sometimes wear their caps backwards when their team is losing. It looks silly, but the baseball players do not mind if it helps them win the game.It can be inferred that superstitions about numbers are .
| A．popular neither in Japan nor in China |
| B．popular only in Japan and in China |
| C．popular both in Japan and in China |
| D．causing great troubles both in Japan and in China |
The underlined word " reverse " means .
| A．change to bad luck | B．cause to go in the opposite direction |
| C．change for the worse | D．exchange |
If a Japanese purposely bumps his head again after an accidental bump, we can be sure that .
| A．he is mad | B．he is happy | C．he is superstitious | D．he is very sad |
The writer wrote this passage with the purpose of .
| A．persuading us to believe superstitions |
| B．showing us some facts of superstitions |
| C．showing us the magic power of number |
| D．showing us a numerologist |
Food sometimes gets poisoned with harmful things. A person who eats such food can get an illness called food poisoning. Food poisoning is usually not serious, but some types are deadly, The symptoms of food poisoning usually begin within hours of eating the poisoned food. Fever is one of the most common symptoms.
Certain microorganisms (微生物) cause most types of food poisoning. Bacteria and other microorganisms can poison eggs, meat, vegetables, and many other foods. After entering the body, these tiny living things release (释放) poisons that make people sick.
Some chemicals can also cause food poisoning. They are often added to food while it is being grown, processed, or prepaid. For example, many farmers spray chemicals on crops to kill weeds and insects. Some people may have a bad reaction to those chemicals when they eat the crops.
Some plants and animals contain natural poisons that are harmful to people. These include certain kinds of seafood, grains, nuts, seeds, beans, and mushrooms.
When people handle food properly, the risk of food poisoning is very small Microorganisms multiply rapidly in dirty places and in warm temperatures. This means that people should never touch food with dirty hands or put food on unwashed surfaces. Food should be kept in a refrigerator to stop microorganisms from growing. Meat needs to be cooked thoroughly to kill any dangerous microorganisms. People should also wash food covered with chemicals before eating it. Finally, people should not eat raid mushrooms or other foods that grow in the wild. Some of these foods may contain natural materials that are poisonous to humans. In addition, some types of fish can be poisonous.
Most people recover from food poisoning after a few days of resting and drinking extra water. If people eat natural poisons, they must go to the hospital right away to have their stomachs emptied.Which of the following statements is NOT true?
| A．Food when poisoned can make people sick. |
| B．Food poisoning means death. |
| C．Food poisoning comes in varieties. |
| D．Food poisoning can be serious. |
We know from the passage that the symptoms of food poisoning.
| A．are always accompanied by a fever |
| B．are too common to be noted |
| C．can be noticed within hours |
| D．can be ignored |
Food poisoning can be caused by all the following EXCEPT.
| A．some chemicals | B．low temperatures |
| C．some tiny living things | D．certain natural materials |
It can be inferred from the passage that
| A．natural materials are safe in food processing |
| B．chemicals are needed in food processing |
| C．food poisoning can be kept under control |
| D．food poisoning is out of control |
Whether you’re headed to another country for business or pleasure, it is likely that you need to keep in
touch with family or business partners in the United States. But if you plan to do that using your cell phone,
you could have an unwelcome surprise—U.S. cell phones don’t work abroad. U. S. companies use different
forms of technology, not like most of the international community, including Europe.
However, there is an easy, cost-effective solution to staying in touch while you’re traveling. You can rent a
phone that is guaranteed to work in the countries you’re traveling. Roadpost offers a 30-day cell phone rental
plan that includes free incoming calls, free voicemail and call waiting services.
The service is convenient and simple. You can place your order online and your phone will be shipped to
arrive on the date you want. If an unexpected business trip comes up, Roadpost can provide next - day delivery
for most cities. In addition to the phone, Roadpost provides a spare battery, travel charger and a leather carrying case.
When your phone is shipped from Roadpost, you receive an e-mail confirmation that contains your international cell phone number so you can leave it with family members and business partners; Roadpost even
provides business cards preprinted with your international phone number.
Those who don’t want to be without e-mail while traveling can rent an international BlackBerry. It can be hard
to stay in touch by e-mail when traveling. With an international BlackBerry, you can email as much as you like, without worrying about an expensive bill. If you’re traveling to very remote areas, you may want to consider
renting a satellite phone: Because they Receive their signals from satellites, these phones work anywhere on the
planet, including oceans and mountains. When you return, simply ship the phone or BlackBerry back to Roadpost using the return kit the company provides.According to the text, Roadpost probably is.
| A．an organization that offers some free services |
| B．a person who offers some advice to foreign tourists |
| C．a company that rents cell phones to Americans going abroad |
| D．a person who makes travel plans for Americans |
The first paragraph mainly tells us that.
| A．Americans need to change their cell phones | B．European form of technology is different from America’s |
| C．U. S cell phones don’t work abroad | D．Americans who go abroad will meet an unwelcome surprise |
Which of the following will help you a lot in mountainous areas?
| A．BlackBerry | B．The return kit | C．E-mail | D．Satellite phones |
According to the text, it can be inferred that.
| A．an international BlackBerry is mainly used to send e-mail |
| B．Roadpost can offer cell phones using in different areas |
| C．you should select a bag used to send your cell phone |
| D．Roadpost’s service is convenient and simple |
Which of the free services can you get from Road post?
| A．Voicemail | B．Sending e-mail | C．Shipping the phone back | D．Call waiting services |